I donít see why the engine and drivetrain wouldnít. The rest of the car? Iím not sure itíll be worth to keep fixing the little things that will break as the mileage racks up, a Corolla for example would be more reliable in that aspect.

The protege has the best engine in its class both in terms of reliability, fuel efficiency and power delivery in particular. They sound great, rev great, the gearing with the manual gearbox is quite good, and the chassis/suspension tuning is rather brilliant.

Iíve owned a 1.6L protege 5 speed manual and the engine was in perfect condition with 300k KM on the clock. It really did run quite well and had lots and lots of life left in the drivetrain. The engine was in far better shape then both of my sixth gen Honda accords with the piece of shit Honda f23 engine which makes less torque at lower RPMís smells like gas and gets pretty bad fuel economy while not being fast at all The suspension on my protege really needed a refresh but the rest of the car held up well.

I don’t see why the engine and drivetrain wouldn’t. The rest of the car? I’m not sure it’ll be worth to keep fixing the little things that will break as the mileage racks up, a Corolla for example would be more reliable in that aspect.

I couldn't disagree more. I'm at 250k miles on mine now and have no reason at all to believe it wouldn't do 300k plus. compression is still great across the board, doesn't leak or burn a drop of oil, AC is ice cold, heat is toasty warm, and every knob, button, and switch in the car works exactly like it is supposed to. While it is covered in mud most the time, it has zero rust and overall in pretty nice shape when i get a wild hair and clean it up. And while i do change the oil regularly about every 5k miles, i'll be honest and say i'm NOT Mr. Maintenance with this car... After all it IS a 15 year old car with 250k miles that i only paid $2k for a couple years ago. I don't intend to fix anything that ain't broke. And i've have very few problems out of it.

Having owned a 2002 Corolla also previous to this car (i actually sold the Corolla after i bought this one, 160k and burning a quart of oil about every 1k miles) from personal owner experience, the protege is a far superior machine in terms of reliability, ride, experience, and build quality (interior AND exterior). That's personal experience opinion. From professional opinion (from previously being a certified tech at a toyota dealership for years) i would also say the Protege is a far superior machine. A few points...

Corolla with 1zz engine (from 98 until 2008) are notorious for oil consumption, particularly 98-02 but it appliies to any of the 1zz motors. Fuel economy, again a win for Mazda. I never got better than about 31mpg in my corolla. I never get below 30mpg in my P5, and in the winter when i don't use the AC i can usually get closer to 35mpg. Maintenance on the Mazda is easier, the engine is smoother and quieter with a better power band. Aside from that, you see a TON of protege's with 200k plus miles still going strong. The Corolla of similar year range typically die long before then, though there are a few freaks of nature that make it to 200k plus, but they're far and few between.

Interior fit and finish and build quality, the P5 blows the corolla away. 250k miles on my P5 and i live on a farm so it's dirty, but cleans up well when i actually do clean it. No tears in the seat and the only notable wear is some of the silver paint on the driver's window switch from my knee resting on it. Every button and switch in the car works exactly like it is supposed to. Every window, wiper, door lock, even sunroof works flawlessly. if something broke i would fix it but i have not had to replace ANYTHING in this car except the timing belt and a vacuum switching valve. Oh and i replaced spark plugs when i bought it

Compare to Corolla, you won't find a 98-02 corolla that actually STILL HAS the door panels attached. Toyota used crap glue and they fall off of every single one. The interior layout is nowhere as nice as the Mazda in terms of comfort; the seats don't support, the dash is layed out blandly and the armrest in the center console is too low to be useful unless you ride like a thug. i don't. The carpet is thin and wears holes easily and the overall noise/comfort/ride quality is very "cheap". 03-08 is a little better but not much, and in that year range you'd be comparing to a Mazda 3 so that's apples and oranges anyway. The AC systems were problematic, i had to replace the expansion valve twice (OEM toyota parts not aftermarket) and had issues with the clutch as well. The AC has always been great in the Mazda minus the "flicker on #2" which i fixed with the resistor trick for free with some spare resistors i had laying around.

I have rambled enough lol. But if i were to buy again and had to choose between a Corolla or a P5, there would be absolutely no hesitation at all in picking the P5. I would go as far to say a "maintained" P5 should last 300k. a "well maintained" will likely go much further than that lol

It wasn’t my decision but I owned a 04 corolla ce. That thing handles like garbage even after being lowered. The seats hurt my back and there was lack of leg space. With me being kind of tall, the steering wheel was far away by the time I sat at a comfortable position. Steering wasn’t responsive. It basically was the total opposite of what I wanted lol. I like go kart like vehicles. My friend had a protege at the time and I always liked driving his car over mine because it handled great in stock form. The corollas body panels moved when you pushed it with your fingers lols. I hated that vehicle with a passion.

250k timing belt broke (again). Last time was at about 190k. Tensioner spring was "sprung" to say the least. Another spring, another timing belt and $35 later i'm up and running better than ever again. zoom zoom